A friend and I were discussing the current Stanley Cup Playoff action, and I mentioned that I was surprised and a little dismayed that the National Hockey League has apparently taken leave of any attempt to contain the upward surge of blatant violence in some of the games.
The case in question was the Anaheim-Nashville series, where a colorful Nashville team of young hustling no-name players were challenging the potent and veteran-filled Anaheim Ducks. The hitting got more and more intense, and there was a lot of taunting going on. 
The Ducks are led by Ryan Kesler, Ryan Getzlaf, and Corey Perry — hard-core veterans well-proven. The Predators were led by Ryan Johansen, Filip Forsberg, and P.K. Subban, all basically skilled but comparatively unknown. Ah, but Pekka Rinne in goal gave a huge boost to Nashville’s chances.
Wth that cast of characters, the Predators stunned the Chicago Blackhawks in four straight, then beat the St. Louis Blues handily right after the Blues had whipped the Wild in five. That sent Nashville to Anaheim, where they certainly looked to be in trouble. Instead, they not only beat the Ducks, they outplayed them.

It was then that the Ducks players seemed to veer off into taking every available run at any Predator in their path. I made the comment that I hoped the NHL would start calling those runs into the boards and ultra-heavy hits “before someone gets hurt.” Turns out, the very night before, Johansen -- the first-line center -- had found respite from countless intimidation attempts by Kesler but got run hard into the boards by some other Duck. He limped off, and after the game they discovered a dangerous condition called acute compartment syndrome. It describes intense pressure build-up inside an enclosed muscle space, from bleeding and swelling after an injury.

Fortunately, Johansen was properly diagnosed and was rushed to a hospital for emergency surgery on his thigh. It was declared successful, but he is out for the remainder of the playoffs. Making matters worse was that Mike Fisher, Nashville captain and No. 2 center, was already out with an undisclosed day-to-day injury.

Those two prominent players joined a half-dozen players on both teams already sidelined with injuries. The sad thing is that the intensity of game action doesn’t necessitate boarding, cross-checking, checking from behind and other things that might be considered worthy of DQs and suspensions during the season, but go uncalled at this stage of the playoffs.

Impressively, Nashville went on into Anaheim with a 3-1 lead in games and snatched a tough 3-1 victory behind Rinne’s goaltending and two third-period goals. Game 5 was back in Nashville, which had proven, conclusively, to have the loudest and arguably the best fans in the NHL.
The Ducks hit the ice flying, and outshot Nashville 12-4 in the first period but trailed 2-0. They outshot the Predators 13-4 in the second period, and closed the gap to 2-1. Colton Sissons, a 23-year-old center who stepped to a higher pedestal with Fisher and Johansen sidelined, scored his second goal of the night to make it 3-1 early in the third, but the Ducks stormed back, racking up 16 more shots to create a 41-18 margin in shots, and tied the game 3-3.

But with six minutes left, Sissons scored again to make it 4-3 Predators. There was an interesting reaction from the crazy 17,352 fans at Bridgestone Arena. So perfectly do the Predators fit the no-name image that even their fans didn’t realize that one of their lads had just completed a hat trick. Several minutes after the fact, the fans littered the ice with hats.

 Filip Forsberg hit an empty net with 2:22 left, and Austin Watson did the same for his second goal, and the Nashville Predators overcame all to beat Anaheim 6-3. It will be the first time the Predators have ever reached the Stanley Cup finals.
But consider this: Through three rounds, Nashville had to win 12 games to advance. The Predators did that, and in the process had 11 different skaters come up with game-winners. Now, that’s balance.
Sure, the next challenge will be the toughest, probably against the Pittsburgh Penguins trying to defend their title. But this Nashville team has the look of the storybook “team of destiny” mantel. 

BAFFLING TWINS 
WIN SOME MORE

 Can anyone explain the Minnesota Twins? They lose some and look hopeless, then they win a couple and make you suspect they might be pretty good. That pattern has continued, right into this week. Trailing the Kansas City Royals 3-0 after two, the Twins got one back on a Robbie Grossman home run, but it was still 3-1 Royals in the last of the ninth when Kennys Vargas was sent up to pinch-hit for Byron Buxton. Vargas hit one so hard it looked like the ball should explode before it departed Target Field on a 443-foot line-drive journey to center field. A 2-run homer, and it was 3-3.

In the last of the 10th, Joe Mauer -- who is hitting, finally -- was on base and got to third with one out. Jorage Polanco came up and ripped a line drive to left. Hard hit, not deep, but Mauer raced home with the winning run in a 4-3 reversal.
A rainout forced a Sunday doubleheader, and the Twins looked inept falling behind 5-0 after four. The Twins came back but lost 6-4. Then they turned it around for an 8-2 victory in the second game.
But that couldn’t prepare us for Monday night, starting a road trip to Baltimore. The Orioles scored five in the second and it was 6-2 after four, when the Twins erupted for four in the fifth, six more in the sixth, and went on to a 14-7 victory, riding a 21-hit barrage.
Everybody hit in that one. Brian Dozier got two hits, as did Grossman, while Mauer got three hits and is now up to .274, while Miguel Sano got four hits and is now .319. Max Kepler added three hits too, and while Escobar, Castro and Buxton got one measly hit each, Polanco was 4-for-5.
Not a bad way to start a road trip!